About half of Americans (53%) expect to receive some direct financial assistance from the popular, $2 trillion economic relief package passed by Congress—but most (57%) in the latest CBS News/YouGov Poll do not believe it will be enough money to save America’s battered economy.
As the COVID-19 crisis continues to spread across the United States, about three in four Americans (74%) report that their community has been ordered to stay home by a governor or local official. These local shutdowns have severely impacted the economy: the nation’s unemployment rate has risen to 4.4 percent and hiring dropped in March.
About one in five (22%) Americans are “very concerned” that in the next few months they, or someone in their household, may lose a job or have a major reduction in paid work hours because of the coronavirus outbreak. About a quarter (23%) are “somewhat concerned” about the impact of this virus on employment.
Hispanic Americans are especially likely (27%) to be “very concerned” about the job impact of COVID-19. About one in nine Hispanic Americans say they have already lost a job (11%) because of the coronavirus outbreak, and 7 percent have gotten hours reduced.
Among Americans who work full-time or part-time, the level of concern is even higher. About half (52%) of US adults working full-time or part-time are very or somewhat concerned about job loss or reduced hours. More than one-third (37%) in this group say they are not too concerned or not at all concerned.
Even as Americans fear it won’t be enough, there is strong bipartisan support for the initial economic relief package passed by Congress. More than four in five Democrats (84%) and Republicans (82%) approve of the historic economic relief package that will provide one-time checks to many Americans. More than three-quarters of Independents (77%) approve of the bill.
Related: What have people changed about their lives in the COVID-19 world?
See the toplines and crosstabs from this week’s CBS News/YouGov Poll
Methodology: This CBS News survey was conducted by YouGov using a nationally representative sample of 2,236 U.S. residents interviewed between March 31 and April 1, 2020. The sample was weighted according to gender, age, race and education based on the American Community Survey, conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, as well as 2016 presidential vote and registration status. The margin of error is +/- 2.4 points.
Image: Getty
